Press Releases
Maryland Congressional Delegation Members Press NASA for Answers on OSAM-1 Mission
This week, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie Raskin, David Trone, and Glenn Ivey (all D-Md.) wrote to National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator Bill Nelson, pressing the agency for answers on its decision to cancel the On-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing 1 (OSAM-1) robotic satellite maintenance mission, even after the lawmakers provided $227 million through … Continue Reading
September 19, 2024
Van Hollen, Adams Introduce Bicameral Legislation to Expand Student Debt Relief for Parent Borrowers
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and U.S. Representative Alma Adams (D-N.C.) introduced the Parent PLUS Parity Act, bicameral legislation to ease the burden of student loan debt for parent borrowers who helped their children pay for their higher education. Nationwide, approximately 3.9 million borrowers have outstanding Parent PLUS loan balances totaling $112 billion. While these loans allow parents of dependent undergraduate students to borrow money to pay costs not already … Continue Reading
September 19, 2024
Maryland Delegation Members Announce $931,000 for Firefighters, First Responders in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Howard Counties
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Dutch Ruppersberger and John Sarbanes (all D-Md.) announced $931,896.84 in federal funding to support Maryland firefighters and first responders in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, and Howard Counties. The funding will enhance emergency response capabilities through personnel recruitment and equipment upgrades, ensuring better protection for the public, firefighters, and other first responders. “Maryland’s firefighters and first … Continue Reading
September 18, 2024
Van Hollen, Norton Introduce Bill to Make Union Station Eligible for Funding Under Federal Transportation Grant Programs
Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) today introduced a bill to make the Union Station Redevelopment Corporation (USRC), a nonprofit responsible for managing and operating Union Station in D.C., eligible for funding under several federal transportation grant programs. “Union Station is the gateway to our nation’s capital for visitors and regional commuters alike, including thousands of Marylanders and District residents every day. We passed the … Continue Reading
September 18, 2024
Van Hollen, Sullivan – Co-Chairs of the Foreign Service Caucus – Make Bipartisan Push for Critical Fix to Foreign Service Pay
This week, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), co-Chairs of the Senate Foreign Service Caucus, sent a letter to Senate Leadership urging the inclusion of provisions reauthorizing Overseas Comparability Pay - a critical measure for Foreign Service members and other overseas federal employees - prior to the end of this Fiscal Year. The Senators begin, “As co-Chairs of the Senate Foreign Service Caucus, we write to urge the inclusion of reauthorization of Overseas … Continue Reading
September 18, 2024
Van Hollen, Luján, Colleagues Urge the FCC to Require Disclosure of the Use of AI-Generated Content in Political Ads on Radio and TV
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senators Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) in urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to adopt the proposed rule requiring disclosure of the use of AI-generated content in political ads on radio and TV. “We recognize that the use of AI-generated content has many benefits. But like any new … Continue Reading
September 16, 2024
Ahead of Hispanic Heritage Month, Van Hollen Joins Padilla, Cornyn, Castro to Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Resolution to Honor Hispanic-Serving Institutions Week
Ahead of National Hispanic Heritage Month, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), chair of the Senate Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) Caucus, and John Cornyn (R-Texas), along with U.S. Representative Joaquin Castro (D-Texas-20), co-chair of the Congressional HSI Caucus, in introducing a bipartisan, bicameral resolution to designate the week starting on September 9, 2024 as National Hispanic-Serving Institutions Week. The resolution is co-led in the … Continue Reading
September 16, 2024
Van Hollen, Cardin Announce Over $560,000 for Eastern Shore Fire Departments
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin announced $566,481.89 in federal funding for three Eastern Shore fire departments to upgrade personal protective equipment. The funding will enhance emergency response capabilities and ensure better protection for the public and the firefighters. “Our firefighters commit to putting their lives on the line every day to keep us safe. This federal funding will provide local Shore fire departments with the tools they need to better protect … Continue Reading
September 13, 2024
Maryland Delegation Members Announce $2.7 Million for Chesapeake Bay Wildlife Habitat Restoration through Chesapeake WILD Program
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie Raskin, David Trone, and Glenn Ivey (all D-Md.) announced $2,798,281.01 in federal funding through the Chesapeake Watershed Investments in Landscape Defense (Chesapeake WILD) Program for eight habitat and wetland restoration projects throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed in Maryland. The Chesapeake WILD Program, administered by the National Fish and … Continue Reading
September 12, 2024
Van Hollen, Nadler, Chu Introduce Legislation to Make Polluters Pay for Fueling Climate Change
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and U.S. Representatives Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) and Judy Chu (D-Calif.) introduced legislation to require the biggest polluters to begin paying their fair share to confront the climate crisis. The Polluters Pay Climate Fund Act, requires the largest U.S.-based fossil fuel extractors and oil refiners and foreign-owned companies doing business in the U.S. to pay into a $1 trillion Polluters Pay Climate Fund, with their contributions based on a … Continue Reading
September 10, 2024
Van Hollen, Cardin Praise Bipartisan Confirmation of Judge Adam Abelson for the U.S. District Court for Maryland
U.S. Senators Chirs Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) today applauded the bipartisan Senate confirmation of Magistrate Judge Adam Abelson to fill a vacancy on the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Judge Abelson fills the seat of former Chief Judge James K. Bredar, who took senior status in April of this year. He was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee in July following a June hearing. “As a magistrate judge, a leader in the Baltimore legal community, and an … Continue Reading
September 10, 2024
Van Hollen Joins Kaine, Marshall in Bipartisan Push Urging Department of Education to Help Ensure Schools Can Properly Meet New Transparency Rules
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senators Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), both of whom serve on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and a bipartisan group of 17 senators in sending a letter to the U.S. Department of Education (ED) in support of delaying the institutional reporting deadline for the new Gainful Employment (GE) and Financial Value Transparency (FVT) regulations to July 2025. The senators’ request comes as ED works … Continue Reading
September 06, 2024
Van Hollen Statement on American Citizen Killed in West Bank
“The Netanyahu Government - including racist extremists like Smotrich and Ben-Gvir - has fueled settler violence in the West Bank at the same time that it has announced new illegal settlements. The United States cannot turn a blind eye to these actions - including the killing of American citizens. To date, the U.S. has not received satisfactory responses from the Netanyahu Government about the two other Americans killed in the West Bank since October 7th, and the Biden Administration has not … Continue Reading
September 06, 2024
Maryland Delegation Members Announce Over $951,000 for Firefighter Training, Equipment Upgrades in Prince George’s, Montgomery Counties
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Glenn Ivey, David Trone, and Jamie Raskin (all D-Md.) announced $951,500.90 in federal funding for fire departments in Prince George’s and Montgomery Counties - resources that will enhance emergency response capabilities and ensure better protection for the public and the firefighters. The funding will support individual departments as well as the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute’s (MFRI) State Fire Training Academy, based … Continue Reading
September 05, 2024
Van Hollen Joins Murphy, Colleagues in Urging Biden Administration to Withhold Military Aid to Egypt Over Human Rights Concerns
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), a member of the Senate Appropriations and Foreign Relations Committees, joined Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Chairman of the SFRC Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism, and eight of their Senate colleagues in urging the Biden administration to withhold the $320 million of Foreign Military Financing (FMF) to Egypt that Congress made contingent upon specific human rights conditions in the FY23 Appropriations Act. … Continue Reading
September 05, 2024
Van Hollen, Cardin, Hoyer Announce Over $700,000 for Fire Departments in Southern Maryland
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressman Steny Hoyer (all D-Md.) announced $707,877.04 in federal funding for seven fire departments in Charles and St. Mary’s Counties. The funding will enhance emergency response capabilities through equipment upgrades, ensuring better protection for both the public and the firefighters themselves. “Our volunteer firefighters in Charles and St. Mary’s Counties work tirelessly to protect the community, and ensuring they have the … Continue Reading
September 03, 2024
Van Hollen, Cardin Announce $1.2 Million for Airport Infrastructure Projects on the Eastern Shore
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) announced $1,269,403 in federal funding for infrastructure and expansion projects at the Salisbury Regional Airport, Easton Airport, and Cambridge-Dorchester Regional Airport. The funding, provided through the Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Airport Improvement Program (AIP), will increase the airports’ capacities to meet operational needs and safety standards. “Eastern Shore airports play … Continue Reading
September 03, 2024
Maryland Delegation Members Announce $332,000 to Protect Children from Lead in Drinking Water at Schools and Childcare Facilities
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie Raskin, David Trone, and Glenn Ivey (all D-Md.) announced $332,000 for the Maryland Department of the Environment for the identification and removal of lead sources in drinking water at schools and childcare facilities across the state. The grant is provided through the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Voluntary School and Childcare Lead Testing … Continue Reading
August 27, 2024
Van Hollen Welcomes Start of Process for Potential Second Central Atlantic Offshore Wind Sale
U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) welcomed the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) step forward on a second regional offshore wind energy sale in the Central Atlantic Ocean. BOEM’s Call for Information and Nominations is a key initial step toward identifying additional wind energy areas (WEAs) in the region for a potential second auction next year, following the first sale which was completed earlier this month. BOEM’s action comes after a December 2023 agreement that Senator … Continue Reading
August 26, 2024
Van Hollen Joins Coons, Ricketts, Colleagues in Bipartisan Letter Supporting U.S. Efforts to Enhance Diplomatic Engagement with Pacific Islands Countries
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), and John Boozman (R-Ark.) sent a bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken ahead of this week’s Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Leaders Meeting where they expressed their support for broader and deeper U.S. engagement with countries of the Pacific Islands region. The 53rd PIF Leaders Meeting taking place this week in Tonga will be attended by 18 member states; the United States … Continue Reading
